Our week cruise came to an end in Seward. Time to get our land legs back.
Now for some history: Seward is named after William Seward, the U.S. Secretary of State in 1867, who purchased Alaska from Russia for less than 2 cents per acre, totaling $7.2 million. Considered a frozen wasteland, the deal was popularly known as "Seward’s Folly". Though, in reality it was a steal. That amount of money was less than one year of Alaskan salmon fishing profits, not to mention timber, gold, furs, etc., and now tourism.
Seward is the sister city to Seward, Nebraska. Apparently they trade high school students from time to time. What a culture shock for each kid.
This is also where the original Iditarod dog-sled race began, though it now takes place from Anchorage to Nome.
We didn't do much in Seward, except walk around town, and watch men, women, and small children pull in giant salmon. Seeing three year olds bashing huge salmon in the head with a rock, and jamming a stick through their gills as a stringer makes one realize, this is a different breed of people than the whiney pansies that populate the cities of the lower 48.
